Remember the ju-ju bones?… Well…. The U.S. Main Street economic engine is almost firing on all cylinders as brick-and-mortar retailers drop their historic complaints of e-commerce impacting their sales and foot-traffic, and instead begin seeing the real life consequences from a resurgent American middle-class.

Target CEO Brian Cornell: “There’s no doubt that, like others, we’re currently benefiting from a very strong consumer environment — perhaps the strongest I’ve seen in my career.” “We’re seeing a great consumer response … unprecedented traffic. As we go back and look, we’ve never seen traffic growth like this.” (link)

The growth in retail foot-traffic is a critical KPI for the economy. Despite economic and business school theory (pushed over the past 20 years), everything of consequence is dependent on a thriving American middle-class; blue and white collar.

Walmart VP of Investor Relations Dan Binder: “Job growth is great. Wages are up. Credit is expanding … So the consumer is in great shape. In the surveys that we look at, they tell us that they are feeling good about their financial condition.”

Home Depot CFO Carol B. Tomé: “As we look to the back half of the year, we continue to expect strong economic growth, with the backdrop of a healthy home improvement environment. Homeowners continue to enjoy home price appreciation, and rising wages and low unemployment have driven consumer confidence to record high levels.”

Macy’s CEO Jeffrey Gennette: “Based on the first-half performance, our strong execution and the anticipation of continued healthy consumer spending, we’re raising both sales and earnings guidance for the year.”

Lowe’s CFO Marshall A. Croom: “We expect to see solid sector growth driven by gains in employment which should boost disposable income and consumer spending.”

The middle-class economic engine can/is self-sustaining around the basic principles of MAGAnomics. Additionally, finalizing America-first trade deals could explode U.S. GDP growth as investment pours into the U.S.A. We will soon need to build a bigger-engine to handle all the high-octane investment fuel.

The economic models of the entire last generation+ are based on the assumptions of continuing globalist economics which advances, and has advanced, the interest of Wall Street over Main Street. They were driving a “service-driven economy” message.

The investing class economy, ie. another name for a ‘service-driven economy’, has been the only source of historic reference for approximately three decades. These talking heads convinced themselves that a “service driven economy” was the ONLY economy ever possible for the U.S. in the future. WATCH:

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Back in January 2017 Deutsche Bank began thinking about it, applying new models, trying to conceptualize and quantify MAGAnomics, and trying to walk out the potential ramifications. They began talking about Trump doubling the U.S. GDP growth rate when all U.S. investment groups couldn’t yet fathom the possibility.

As we have continued to share, CTH believes the paycheck-to-paycheck working middle-class are going to see a considerable rise in wages and standard of living. How high can wages rise?… that depends on the pressure; and right now the pressure is massive. I’m not going to dismiss the possibility we could see 10 to 20% increases in year-over-year wage growth in multiple Main Street economic sectors.

Winnamins. We need lots of them…

Now here’s the critical leadership part…. After two-plus decades of Wall Street emphasis on inventory and supply chain management: Who is going to be bold enough to ramp up inventories high enough to prepare for, and take advantage of, the upcoming MAGAnomic holiday season?

I’m sick of Macy’s not carrying the merchandise, but they’ll order it for you online.
Sure, with a minimum to ship it to your home.
Then, when whatever it is doesn’t fit, it’s a trip back to the store to return the stuff, and try again.
Kmart/Sears are closing more stores. They complain that consumers don’t want to shop in the stores.
That’s because when you find what you think you want, they don’t have it in your size or the color you want.
It’s absolute rubbish that the women of America have suddenly all decided that we don’t like going shopping.

Yeah. I’ve got an issue with Lowe’s, who just shut down Orchard Supply Hardware, a legend in California (in particular the area around San Jose), the best hardware store I’ve ever known, outside of Dale Hardware in Fremont.

He can yap about increasing employment all he wants, he’s gonna have the entire staffs of 99 stores in the unemployment lines, around Christmas, no less, and many, MANY customers who will have to deal with an inferior alternative.

Of course, OSH’s slide began with their acquisition by SEARS, run by a clown named Brennan…hmmm… Same thing with Montgomery Wards, run by another Brennan (his brother). Could there be THREE of them???

/rant. Don’t mean to rain on the parade, but Croom is a bit like Al “Chainsaw” Dunlap…
Cut even when he had enormous profits…

Then again, Kalifornistan’s business environment is abysmal, at best, but it’s much better than it has been the last five or ten years, I’ll bet…

I’ve shopped at Orchard for 55 years, and they were one of the few hardware stores that consistently hired and retained seniors (and their vast store of knowledge), and gave back an enormous amount to the communities which they served.

Lowes, on the other hand, aggressively drove competitors out of business. I saw this happen in West Virginia, among other places.

The upper manager for Lowes (only hired two days previously) apparently wanted to come in with a “macho management moment”. Good that they help vets. Too bad about the thousands who will lose their livelihoods just before Christmas…

I don’t like HW stores with racks going up to infinity stuffed with the most popular goods that people will buy, sold by refugees from Circuit City, BestBuy, and McDonalds. I want a store where I can go in, ask someone with more than half a clue for a SLIGHTLY uncommon part (e.g. a four-way cross pipe fitting) that’s not wrapped in plastic and made in China. Or perhaps some advice on options for a service entrance I’m looking to expand/replace…

For Cuppa. I grew up not far from Dale Hardware in Fremont. Those guys knew/know everything and Orchard was always a close second. As a very recent escapee from CA, now in the Las Vegas area, I hope the ACE here close to home is decent substitute.

Yep. Dale is without peer. They were independent for years before they joined up with the ACE chain, but still retain their own way of doing things. Back in those days, they were across the street from where they are now, next to the (long gone) B of A and (I think) a bakery, not to forget Cloverdale Creamery just a ways away. Even longer ago, the VERY best was Rose Hardware, at the foot of Fremont Blvd. and Peralta… Pete’s Hardware in Castro Valley was/is also really good.

@Cuppa… Where I am at near Brentwood, CA, there is an ACE Hardware that is like the old mom-pop places. They have a large variety of all sorts of stuff and very knowledgeable staff. DH has to go to the “big” stores for lumber but hates to since CA has a hidden tax on EVERY piece of wood purchased…

Lowe’s is useless and Home Depot pretty much carries a lot of crappy stuff (good luck getting good lumber). So, locally I use Gandahl’s Lumber.

But, Orchard Supply Hardware is (was?) a wonderful store. Even my wife loved shopping that in that place -actually she likes Gandhal’s too. Everyting is well displayed and they often have the stuff you need. Plus the staff knows their thing. Good luck getting that kind of service at Lowe’s.

If Lowe’s shuts down OSH… well, I guess I won’t be shopping any where close to a Lowe’s owned stored.

Just another example of how new management comes in, wants to justify their hiring and destroys the company.

Sherry, the week they announced Nordstrom was going to discontinue Ivanka I went over a bought a pair of her shoes, I love them btw, I told the lady, when she asked if I found everything OK, I replied, why yes of course but I guess I won’t be shopping here again if no Ivanka. I have kept my word no Nordstrom and no Nordstrom Rack.

Madeline, great minds think alike. I pulled two moves similar to yours when Nordstrom discontinued Ivanka’s line:

1) I treated myself to four new dresses by Ivanka, all purchased online from various retailers. Then I emailed Blake Nordstrom himself and told him all about my new dresses and how much money I’d spent at other outlets — NOT Nordstrom— with a promise nevertheless to shop at Nordstrom again.
2) I enjoyed one last visit to my local Nordstrom. I went in and ask a sales lady if I could see some dresses from Ivanka Trump’s line. She got a scowl on her face and said they no longer carried Ivanka’s line, but they had lots of other dresses I might like. I politely said no thanks, as Ivanka’s styles fit me perfectly (which they do!) and I would just shop elsewhere. And I have shopped elsewhere, ever since.

I haven’t shopped at Nordstrom’s since 2 blue haired sales ladies followed me around the store, convinced I was going to steal something (I was wearing jeans and a t-shirt). When I went up to pay and whipped out my CARD… they just turned a little pink. I never shopped there again. And that was in the 1970’s!!!

“Who is going to be bold enough to ramp up inventories high enough to prepare for, and take advantage of, the upcoming MAGAnomic holiday season?” Uh, that would be me, Mr. President. Myself and my crew have had our foot to the floor building inventory since the day you came down the escalator. See you at the top.

Please send some of that business to Vermont. We are wallowing in a Progressive funk created by our Pols that hate Trunp, hate business, hate fossil fuels, hate climate warming deniers. Oh never mind, we are getting just what we deserve.

Budso, Vermont will grow out of it. No worries, I lived in Stowe 50 years ago when Vt. was Republican and boasted “more cows than people.” The people are a hard working independent breed. Unfortunately, the Green Mountains have been invaded and bought up by New Yorkers and Mass. and urban progressives desiring a ‘Green Acres’ hippidom not knowing the first thing about tapping a maple tree. Trump’s economy will eventually sway politics up there. Real Vermonters are true yankee people with industry in their veins.

We just completed a long road trip… major interstates, and I noticed a change in the trucking.. Lots of heavy construction equipment being carted hither and yon, and lots of tandem Fed Ex haulers. Economy is booming,,, you can see it on the high way.

UP out side my window here in Eastern Oregon-or Western Idaho as we locals call it-is digging up some absolutely antique locomotives. GP-45’s and ancient GE cab units. they save the newer stuff of intermodal (containers.0 but boy some of the secondary freights are interesting..

I recently have seen more of the slow moving heavy dump trucks locally.
Just yesterday I was following one with a big “do not follow” sign on the back. LOL.
There’s something in the air… diesel fumes maybe, but who cares? That’s the smell of WORK!

Amwick, we took a week long vacation to Carmel, Indiana visiting daughter and
son in law. We’ve never seen so many semi trucks in our 65 years. Counted
30-40 in a row. More trucks of all kinds than cars. We couldn’t believe it. Wore my TRUMPSLIDE 2020 shirt all the way there from SC and everywhere we stopped people loved it and love our great President. We also talked about voting in primaries and November and bring family/friends to the polls! MAGA 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸

I got an email from our fav artist, Jon McNaughton today. Apologizing about the late delivery for “The Swamp” that I ordered. Seems to be a lot of delivery issues around elsewhere as well. It’s OK. I’m patient! I’m just so happy to see our economy picking up at long last!
Thank God for my President!

annnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnd I just realized something… It seems that there were always big big buildings, old corporate offices, or industrial sites, I mean really big places with huge signs “available” or “lease available” stuff like that. Instead, I saw new places, or spritzed up old places… no empties… 🙂 TY Potus!!!

Let the economy just keep growing by the Grace of a God using Trump for the good of the American people.

May the American people see the clear difference between what Trump is doing vs the liberal failures of the past. Especially on Election Day. And may they vote accordingly, and may liberals once again cry on election night as the American people recognize what and who is more beneficial for them.

I work for a third party logistics company. I can tell you from the inside they keep talking about how good our sales are. They are ramping up contracts for multiple companies at a rate we are having trouble maintaining trained personnel for.

I’ve personally spent more tens of $$$ thousands of dollars in the last two months than I have spent in the last 15years (a home improvement project). Building materials, tools, subcontractors, etc. All being spent in a way that benefits our economy.

My own personal story is perfectly encapsulated in these numbers. And MY President has been the spur to my activity. And MY President has FUNDED a uuuge chunk of this personal wealth expansion by the BOOMING stock market which has been an unbelievable windfall of PROFITS in my pocket. PROFITS that I am spending on my Home ASSET… thus increasing its value in a superheated marketplace.

MY President’s policies have raised MY boat like never before. Suck on THAT Mueller! et.al.

Everyone says I’m crazy, but all year I have been saying 6% GDP growth by the end of 2018. Christmas 2018 should push it over the top, and watch all the American made stuff that start flying off the shelves. And not just regular Christmas present stuff, but big ticket stuff. No more nursing that aged old car and pickup truck. “Merry Christmas, Honey!” We’re back!

If you don’t see the ‘unprecedented’ BOOM in … TARGET … retail traffic as a resurgent … MIDDLE CLASS … then you must be a coastal elite too out of touch to matter anymore.

Despite being a coastal elite, myself … my wife LOVES Target … since she grew up solidly middle class, and her mother bargain-shopped to stretch the family budget. Now … if we can just get rid of the made-in-China/Malaysia crap … we’d really be in business.

A lot of online retailers seem to have an issue of repeatability in sizes, even in one style. I’m sure they piece out orders to different vendors but, with the competition within vendors, you’d think that it shouldn’t be a problem. My pet peeve is that poor quality of Chinese/asian goods is due to extreme cutting corners. Personally, I wouldn’t mind paying a little more if the product lasts longer. Why are retailers using cheaper fabric or manufacturers cheaper components if the product fails so quickly? Some T-shirts are see thru and I’ve had multiple AV receivers die every two or three years and they weren’t the low end ones. How about using better board components?

The Left has been hostile to the middle class going back at least to the fifties. “Middle-class” was a verbal sneer among sophisticated leftists of the time. This continued into current days with the remarks of a previous occupant of the White House about bitter clingers to guns and religion.

Perhaps more significant, the globalists have economically abandoned the American middle class over several decades. President Trump didn’t get here a moment too soon!

The left has always hated the middle class because they rightly viewed America’s middle class as the single most powerful barrier to a worker’s communist revolution in the US. I used to listen to my Marxist professors lament and fret about it. How to deal with the middle class? Well, they figured it out. Destroy it.

They almost succeeded, with the help of globalist multinational corporate management who would sell their children for a buck, and DID. They should consider themselves lucky to be allowed to just walk away. Historically it has not always worked out that way for the enemies of the people. Trump is the best friend the left has, even if they don’t know it. Remove him, and the next one we send may not be so forgiving.

Destroying the Middle Class is one of the top agenda items for Marxists/communists. The very existence of a Middle class gives the peons/serfs/whatever something to which they can aspire. If they are successful in destroying the middle class then it’s just them ruling over the serfs

Classic Marxism/Leninism from the last centuries finds the “bourgeoisie” or the “petit-bourgeoisie” (Middle-class, lower-middle-class people) impediments to the revolution, because they have enough prosperity to want to preserve their society, rather than burn it down.

So, yes, you are quite right in seeing hostility: if you are a Leftist, you are SUPPOSED to be hostile toward them! Why anybody votes Dem/Leftist is beyond me…except for the explanation of liberal yuppie guilt about being prosperous and a desire to imitate the Leftist millionaire elitists (suffering the ultimate cognitive dissonance about being prosperous while others are not) on the coasts! 😉

That “They say this day would never come” video is nothing short of FANTASTIC. I love the part at the end where O is making the statement, from the night he won his first term election. POTUS has certainly turned things around in a way I didn’t dream that was a possibility. This is the kind of winning that nobody tires of. Thank you President Trump.

I see help wanted signs listing wages now. Good Times started doing this early 2017, $8/hour. Same store now lists their starting wage at $11.50/hour. Other businesses here (CO) are now doing it. Dry cleaner has a help wanted sign for a presser at $13/hour. Medical device company’s help wanted sign wants assemblers at $16/hour, specifies easy work, no experience necessary, will train.

In a short time President Trump has made the Republican party the party of everyday middle class working people. The Democrats have become a collection of either country club Democrats or radical socialists.

President Trump was a Republican for many years. He got disgusted & walked away. Then he spent a few years as a Democrat…ditto. He tried Independent for a year or two and then went back to identifying as Republican, became the head of the party. Now he is reshaping it. MAGA.

Trump has mentioned it a couple times; the new “Investment Tax Credit” can have a greater positive affect than the tax-cut itself. I am working on how it can be applied for the average taxpayer and if so, it would be a huge plus for every working tax paying American.

When a company invests in equipment or facilities, etc. more people are hired. Puts upward pressure on wages throughout the the economy. Wages go up, business volume goes up, economies of scale go up, profits go up and so the stock market goes up and all of this has a velocity of money factor which is huge. Think of velocity as inventory turns for a retailer. You take a portion of your raise and have a plumber put in a new water heater for $500 before you absolutely have to. Plumbing supply house sells a $400 water heater and pays the manufacturer $375 to restock. Plumber decides he had a good day and is going to take his wife out to dinner so goes for a haircut for $15. Since it was his 3rd water heater of the day he decides to splurge on dinner and spends $75 including tip. It keeps going and going cascading throughout the economy. Everyone touched by your $500 spends some of it.

If I misunderstood your question here is view #2. Your wife does embroidery as a hobby. She sells at local craft shows. She buys a gee golly wizzbang machine that makes her 10 times more efficient. She has so much inventory that she talks some of the neighbour ladies into manning booths on a wider scale. She makes $18k in the first year. Pays the neighbours $5K, pays herself $5k and gets to expense the machine immediately so showing a “loss” and lowering your tax burden. The next year she buys 2 more machines and trains 2 of the neighbours to use them. Next thing you know your wife is leasing a 30,000 sq foot facility with contracts with retailers and buys you a Bass boat for your birthday.

Such a great video, reminds me of how direct and accurate Donald Trump was as he traveled across our Country and made his compact with the American people. We are so lucky that he was called to sacrifice himself and lead the charge against the Global Empire and our corrupt establishment.

Why would he ask anybody to evaluate anything? Isn’t he the guy in charge? Is he incapable of making an executive decision? Of course he is. He’s in way over his head. Only one thing to do. Fire his ass.

But the Socialists want to get rid of Trump, because they need a country of hopeless, poor, desperate people, so they can convince them that the only way for them to survive is to let the state / the Government control their entire existence.

On the Macy’s call, the executive team sounded bullish on the consumer spending.

“Based on the first half performance, our strong execution and the anticipation of continued healthy consumer spending, we’re raising both sales and earnings guidance for the year,” said CEO Jeffrey Gennette.

He added, “we are also benefiting from strong consumer confidence and spending, including growth in international tourist spending.”

Stuff that I use to not be able to get from local (in state) retailers now have EVERYTHING. Local retailers and manufacturer inventories are up, up up. Buy local if it makes sense to you. It does to me for a lot of stuff I buy in the clothing and sporting goods segments.

In another vein, Europeans are giving their last year (2018) cars away. They know what’s coming. I’m leasing a Porsche suv with a year to go and they will just take it and give a new one on another lease. No extra charges. I’m not biting. Going to Ford (Lincoln Aviator) next. Gorgeous!

First time I’ve made a longer post instead of just a comment so I’m absolutely certain I’ll mess it up. Apologies beforehand. This was posted by a fb friend

“Having grown up in Odessa and having worked in the oil patch, I have seen a number of booms and busts in the oil and gas business. Last week, Kathie and I drove through West Texas and the Permian Basin, and I saw evidence of an oil boom larger than I have ever seen.

We drove east from El Paso on the northernmost roads in Texas just south of the border between New Mexico and Texas. Late in the afternoon (around 4 pm), starting in eastern Culberson County on 652, we started seeing lots of oil field activity — lots of truck traffic, lots of pipelines under construction, lots of storage and treatment stations, and a good number of drilling rigs. As we entered the four way stop in Orla (population 2 – that’s right, two) in northern Reeves County, we got into a traffic jam at the intersection – with traffic backed up half a mile coming from all directions.”

We hooked a right on 285, and the traffic was moving, but crawling, mainly because trucks were pulling on and off the road frequently. At the intersection of 305 and 285, we turned left on 305 to head across the Pecos River into Loving County, the smallest population county in Texas.
Let me say that again. There was a mile long traffic jam leaving the smallest population county in Texas! I presume this was because there is so much activity in Loving County that people are commuting from Pecos and Kermit and Odessa and other cities to work in Loving County by day.

My wife and I visited the county seat of Loving County, Mentone, in 2014. At that time, there was some oilfield activity in Loving, enough for a food truck to set up at the intersection in Mentone. At that time there was no restaurant and no gas station in Mentone. As we passed through the crowded streets of Mentone at around 5 pm this time, we saw that there is a new restaurant and there were multiple food trucks at the intersection.

We continued east on 302 to Kermit. Along the way, we saw a fracking sand production facility constructed in the middle of a field of sand dunes. As we got to the outskirts of Kermit, we ran into an intersection of the road between Kermit and Wink that was backed up for a mile and took 15 minutes to get through.

Bottom line – I have never seen this level of activity in the Permian Basin. Clearly big things are happening there, and I have to conclude that it is good for Texas and good for America.

I have not been to. Target store since their decision to make the restrooms “all inclusive”. Which means any Perv, Dick, or Harry can waltz into the ladies room anytime they “feel like a woman”. I’ll never shop there again.
No Starbucks either. Done and Done.

My DH watched a video on YT about what REALLY goes into Starbucks coffee… especially those that employ “refugees.” OMG… I don’t know if the video is still available but I encourage any current Starbucks buyers to please look it up… !

I love hearing tidbits of good news about the politically incorrect. I have not a clue in the world why corporations feel they have to pretend they have the ‘pride’ when it doesn’t mean a hill of beans to most Americans.

“U.S. and Mexican trade negotiators are “hours” away from squaring away bilateral differences on the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) but work with Canada is likely to stretch into September, a top Mexican official said on Sunday.

“Mexican Economy Minister Ildefonso Guajardo told reporters that work with Canada, which has sat out the latest phase of NAFTA talks, would take at least a week, though he was optimistic Mexico and the United States were close to agreement.

“I would say that we’re practically in the final hours of this negotiation,” he told reporters as he entered talks at the offices of U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) Robert Lighthizer.:”

You just can’t teach common sense – even if it’s Wharton, Harvard, Stanford or any other business school in this country.

An economy can not survive without a middle class. It is the workforce and the largest body of consumers. And yet, the idiot elite are constantly squeezing it in an attempt to grow the economy. and it never works.

The worst fears of the UniParty are being realized. They were afraid that left alone Trump policies would prove successful, which would then expose the lies they have been telling us about the economy, taxes, and everything else for the last 75 years.